Board of Education

The Board of Education encourages your participation in its deliberations and has tried to make it convenient for you to express your views. 

Public comment opportunities will be available through Zoom and in person. Instructions on how to access the Zoom meeting can be found at the start of each meeting agenda. 

To maintain the order of speakers and accurately capture comments, please submit a virtual speaker card in advance.

Speaker time is determined by the number of speakers on an item, as follows:

• 1-10 speakers = 2 minutes
• 11-15 speakers = 1.5 minutes
• 16+ speakers = 1 minute

Each agenda item is limited to 30 minutes of public comment.

Open Forum

The purpose of Open Forum is for members of the public to address the Board on non-agenda items. Speaking time cannot be delegated to another person; the name on the submitted speaker card must match the name of the individual speaking.

Board members or district staff members may briefly respond to statements made or questions posed by the public but cannot take action on non-agenda items.

Agendized Items

The general order of regular agenda items is as follows:

• Staff presentation
• Community participation
• Board deliberation and decision, if applicable

Special Meetings/Study Sessions

Due to the short notice often associated with posting special meetings and study sessions, there is no Open Forum at these meetings. The public is welcome to address any item posted on the agenda. As these meetings are less formal, the format for discussion may vary slightly from regular meetings.

Requests to be Included in Board Packets

Should you wish to present a letter(s) or other materials for inclusion in the Board packet, it must be received by the Superintendent's Office by noon Tuesday the week before a Board meeting. Please indicate you would like your material included in the packet.

Requests to Add an Item to a Future Agenda

A citizen may place an item on a future Board agenda by submitting a written request and supporting information to the Superintendent's Office. In consultation with the Board President and Vice President, the Superintendent will determine at which upcoming regular Board meeting the item will appear on the agenda. The person who requested the item will be allowed three minutes at the meeting to present the information to the Board. Following the presentation, the Board may address the topic, put the topic on a future agenda, refer the topic to the administration, or take no action.

Each year the Board of Education members liaise to schools and committees in order to build relationships, hear from staff, students, and families, and to act as a conduit for information to and from the schools, Palo Alto Partners in Education (PiE), and the PTA Council.

Background

The Board and Superintendent are committed to the most effective and efficient working relationship possible for the governance team. The protocols guide the Board and Superintendent work, so everyone can devote their full energy to focusing on our students.

Purpose

The Board of Trustees is the educational policy-making body for the District, doing its work in meetings of the board in public. To effectively meet the District’s challenges, the Board and Superintendent must function together as a leadership team. To ensure the collective effectiveness of the team, operating procedures, or protocols, must be in place. Below are general protocols and those that are specific for the Board and for the Superintendent.

• Adopted: September 11, 2007
• Reviewed: December 20, 2007 and January 15, 2008
• Readopted: January 29, 2008
• Updated: February 12, 2013